Smiling / The Little Pink Dress

Lin knew that this was because she was too aggressive, which allowed him to always find a flaw in her behavior. After all, men and women do have differences in personality.

Her abrupt remark at the dinner table about her figure after growing up, combined with her later statement, "When you see someone you can never see again, it's better to be more honest," and her subsequent behavior, all revealed a touch of the capriciousness of women he knew.

Even Lin from Parallel World can't escape the common problems faced by women, right?

Lin made use of this. He knew that Yan Luo had no competitive spirit; it was simply because her skills in this area were unmatched. But now she had lost, and to a stalker no less. She certainly wouldn't admit defeat.

It feels a bit like manipulating people's hearts...

It's quite interesting.

The last hour had passed, and Kevin, having had his fill of torturing the human machine, came over to watch. Even Yan Luo couldn't beat Lin; at most, he could only beat him down to the last person.

Yan Luo has run out of game currency.

More and more onlookers gathered behind them. Yan Luo, the beautiful girl who was invincible in the world, was quite famous in the neighborhood. Today, she was beaten so badly that she couldn't even lift her head.

"It's okay, losing to me isn't shameful," Lin said in his characteristically calm tone, having not renewed his coin the entire time. "You're just bad."

After saying that, he got up and left, not even noticing Yan Luo's stunned expression.

Take a deep breath.

Lin sat on the edge of the rooftop. He had returned here after many years, but he didn't feel much nostalgia. He just wanted to find a quiet place where he could sort out his thoughts.

He played the game for so long not only to kill time until the 24 hours were up, but also to test Yan Luo.

Yan Luo's reflexes were almost identical to his, which was within his expectations. After all, they were the same person from different worlds, and their general directions were the same. However, Lin was certain that she did not know about the existence of the Fire-Chasing Moth.

Lin's memories of his student days are fragmented and disorganized. He can't remember much, but he has a vague impression of the Moth Chaser and the Speaker. So even though it was his most cheerful period, he always had a sense of urgency that he didn't know where it came from.

He didn't sense any of these qualities in Yan Luo; she seemed like just an ordinary, aloof high school student.

In other words, in Yan Luo's world, she considers the fire-chasing moth to be a false existence.

Finally, Lin confirmed one more thing.

The monkey's paws are gone.

Neither he nor Yan Luo discovered the existence of the monkey's paw that could grant wishes.

Chapter Sixty-Nine: Smiling

As Lin stood on the rooftop pondering how to find the monkey's paw to use his last wish, he suddenly felt that the scenery before him was somewhat strange.

He couldn't quite put his finger on what was strange about it. It was exactly the same as the Changkong City he remembered, but he just felt a slight sense of unease.

When Lin caught a glimpse of the bright lights in the distance, a thought flashed through his mind and he realized that something was wrong.

The clock tower is gone.

The first three clock towers were truly landmark buildings; no matter where you were, you could see their towering, long structure whenever you looked up.

As Lin prepared to wait for the 24 hours to pass, an indescribable feeling rose in his heart. He jumped off the rooftop, grabbed the edge of the window on the floor below, and then let go. The whole process took only a few seconds before he landed on the ground.

Without hesitation, Lin chose a route out of the city and ran.

If... someone intends to trap them here, and Yan Luo can leave simply by restoring his power over time, or by using up his three wishes, then how can they be kept here?

If keeping them here and providing them with a way to leave are not contradictory, then the other party will try to prevent Yan Luo from leaving through his own power, and that way is...

Lin was walking through Changkong City at night once again, but this time, he was all alone, and no Yan Luo was secretly following him.

The starry sky above had changed, and he had reached the edge of the city.

The size of this World Bubble is roughly the same as that of Changkong City, which Lin had already confirmed last time.

But now, he looked out at the road stretching out before turning back to the city, which seemed no different from any other day.

Has the World Bubble expanded?

"My friend... where are you going?"

Eden, exuding an aura of nobility comparable to that of a banquet, called out to Lin, who was furtively trying to leave her side. He was chatting and laughing with the others, but when he passed by her, he avoided her like the plague. So Eden was a little curious about why Lin, who was so different from before, was avoiding her.

Lin Gan smiled and turned his head, "I... need to use the restroom."

"The toilet is over there," Eden pointed in a direction.

"I prefer a more upscale toilet."

"Vill-V said she converted the toilet into a fully automatic one, which is very high-end."

"..."

Lin's lips twitched, but she couldn't smile anymore.

He wasn't hiding from Eden, but from the person beside her.

The Nun, her hands empty, looked at him frivolously, her half-closed eyes filled with a hazy, indistinct quality.

Eden met Aponia after the banquet began. The two hit it off immediately. Eden's philosophy and aesthetics had some similarities with Aponia's theology, and Aponia was very interested in the different countries and landscapes that Eden had seen.

It was like they hit it off immediately, and it's foreseeable that Elysia and Eden's little circle will have another member in the future.

"Lin... are you afraid of me?" Aponia gave a faint smile; she could tell that Lin was actually avoiding her.

Even in the Deepest Place, after Lin woke up, he quickly fled from there, as if he was afraid that if he stayed by her side for any longer, something terrible would happen.

Lin's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and his expression was unusually stiff. "How could that be... I just... um... it's just that you and Lin have a very good relationship, and I feel that I can't deceive your feelings by pretending to look like him."

Prometheus, standing behind him, curled his lip in disdain.

"Really? Then why are your legs shaking?"

"This..." Lin steadied her trembling legs by holding onto the table beside her. "I'm so happy that I can't help but start dancing."

"That sweat..."

"My heart races when I see you, which makes my sweat glands sweat a lot."

His eloquence was one of his greatest strengths, but Aponia, who should have been easy to fool, did not let him off the hook. Her tranquil and ethereal eyes remained fixed on Lin.

"If you don't mind, let's chat for a while."

Eden seemed to have noticed Lin's unusual attitude toward Aponia. She didn't say anything, but instead opened a bottle of red wine she had brought, poured it into a wine glass, and handed it to Lin.

"Isn't today a wonderful day, my friend?"

"Hehe... yes." Lin Pi took the wine glass with a forced smile and took a small sip of red wine.

He was clearly very nervous; his toes were pointing towards the door, indicating that he wanted to escape.

"Lin... don't you have anything to say to me?" Aponia's voice seemed to echo directly in Lin's mind, and the barely perceptible resentment in her tone made Lin swallow hard.

"I guess so..." Lin smiled bitterly. "Um... Aponia, if it's okay, you can tell Lin directly if you have any needs in the future."

"I do not understand."

Lin looked into her eyes, his smile almost faltering.

"It means don't sneak around taking advantage of him... it means you can hug him openly and honestly. You're good friends, and you can hug him as many times as you like, like good friends do." Lin carefully chose her words.

Nun are supposed to be pure, at least that's what many people think.

Aponia's appearance is absolutely perfect. If she were to compete for the title of the purest Nun of the century, she could defend her title simply because of her pure and flawless appearance that gives people a sense of holiness.

But this Nun has too many ulterior motives; she is not as simple as she seems. Moreover, she often uses reasons that others cannot refute to achieve her goals, leaving no reason for anyone to object. Sometimes, she goes too far and becomes blatant.

Many people would call this a cute contrast, but Lin thinks the contrast is a bit too much.

In short, it's best to prepare for the future in advance, otherwise, given his simple-mindedness, he might not even realize he's being taken advantage of by this Nun.

"...Yes, I will." Aponia's expression remained unchanged as she nodded calmly.

Lin breathed a sigh of relief, preparing to finish his drink and leave, but Aponia followed closely behind with a question, "Lin, when will you be back?"

"...Soon." Lin took a deep breath and smiled. "He will come back when it's time, not too early and not too late."

"And... what about you? Where will you go?"

"..."

This is the first person to ask him where he's going.

Everyone else was asking where Lin had gone and how he could come back, but no one asked where the current "Lin" would be after he returned.

But from the Lin Cong didn't want anyone to ask him this question.

"I will go back to where I belong, a place that suits someone like me."

He raised his glass, smiled at Eden and Aponia, then looked up and drank it all in one gulp.

Smiling.

Laughing...

Chapter Seventy: The Pink Dress

Yan Luo has recently developed a must-do project after school.

After school, she would head straight to the arcade, where someone would always be waiting for her.

She relentlessly competed with her opponent, who would also defeat her without holding back.

As time went by, Yan Luo's skills continued to improve, and she also noticed that some of her habits were being exploited by her opponents. As a result, Lin's victory became increasingly difficult, from an initial crushing defeat to a narrow victory with only half a health bar or even a sliver of health remaining.

Yan Luo's friends would also come to the arcade to watch, marveling at the spectacle.

As for which friends they were, Lin was quite familiar with them.

Kevin, Hua, Immer, Sue, Mei... even Lin saw the soul in it.

There are also some people who, although not the same age as Yan Luo, are very close to her, such as her homeroom teacher, Himiko.

Some of the people Lin knew had personalities identical to those he knew, and they lived ordinary lives in this world that had not yet Honkai.

However, Lin did not have any deep interactions with them, even those who had passed away in his world.

Because this is the world where Yan Luo, makes his wishes.

They won again. This time, Lin's health bar was almost invisible, making one wonder if he would fall to his death if he lifted the joystick up and jumped.

Yan Luo continued to insert coins with a sullen face, but Lin did not select a character. Instead, he placed both hands on the buttons and said in a voice that was hard for the people next to him to hear, "Is this enough for you?"

What are you saying?

"Would you rather wallow in falsehood than move forward?"

It's as if she gave up on finding a way to save humanity and instead just hunted down her Parallel World counterpart.

She wanted to stop, to just stand still, and not make any more mistakes.

"I don't understand what you're saying. Are you going to beg for mercy?"

"... Right?"

Lin got up, but instead of starting another game, he turned and left.

"Are you trying to escape?!" Yan Luo shouted from behind him.

He stopped, turned around, and stared at her coldly.

"It was you who wanted to escape."

Under the starry night and bright moon, Yan Luo walked alone on her way home. The image of Lin leaving replayed in her mind: his indifferent gaze and his icy words.

What did that person mean by that...?

Lin was like a strange plug-in, suddenly intervening in her life, saying strange things, but that unique feeling was something that Yan Luo had only seen in her reflection in the mirror.

Even so, there's no need to pay any attention to what Lin said.

What is immersed in falsehood? What is unwilling to move forward?

She felt that she was living a good life. Friends, teachers, playmates... an ordinary life and ordinary relationships, what more could she ask for?

How could this be fake? Everything about her, all that she owns, should be here.

You don't need to move forward; you can just stay where you are.

Even though that guy was clearly scared and ran away in the end, he still made some threats.